The present invention relates generally to rack and pinion steering systems for vehicles, and more particularly to a wear compensator for a rack and pinion steering system.
Rack and pinion steering systems may have some type of mechanism for biasing the rack securely against the pinion shaft gear. This is done to help minimize the potential for rattles that might arise in the steering system, which may produce an undesirable noise heard by the vehicle operator. The rattle may arise due to wear of components in the system.
One such prior art compensation system provides a rack follower in sliding engagement with the rack in opposed relation to the pinion shaft gear, an adjusting screw that is threaded into the steering gear housing, and an axial compression spring (thrust spring) between the two. Then, as wear occurs, the spring accounts for the wear by continually biasing the rack follower into the rack, maintaining the rack in engagement with the pinion shaft gear. While this arrangement may work adequately for some vehicles, for others the wear in the system is still sufficient to result in rattles in the steering system that can be heard by vehicle operators, particularly when driving over rough roads.